August rain brings mixed bag to farmers

Tuesday

What a difference a year makes for grain farmers who welcomed good rains during the often-time dry month of August.

What a difference a year makes for grain farmers who welcomed good rains during the often-time dry month of August.

“We’re well above normal for August – probably four inches higher than usual,” Robert Goodson, Phillips County Extension agent for agriculture, said Monday. “(By contrast) We had .89 of an inch of rain in August 2007.”

The rains have been beneficial for soybeans, Goodson said, and soybean acreage has seen a sharp rise from 2007.

“We have about 200,000 acres in soybeans this year compared to 147,000 in 2007. Prices are hovering around $12 a bushel,” Goodson said. Farmers averaged 75 bushels last year without irrigation, he said.

The greater interest in soybeans was spurred by a decline in cotton prices to the low 60-cent range, Goodson said. August’s rainy period has not helped cotton.

“Cotton loves hot, dry weather,” Goodson said. “The bolls have set, but not many bolls have opened yet.”

Cotton’s progress is measured in terms of heat units. According to the Arkansas Cotton Research Station at Marianna, the heat units accumulated well the first six days of August with a peak of 8.7 units on Aug. 2.

When the rains came, farmers witnessed a reversal of heat units with the least report being a negative 7.7 units on Aug. 10. The aggregate heat units peaked at 191 on Aug. 6. Through Aug. 20 the accumulated units dropped to 162. The minimum, or base, temperature for cotton is 60 degrees Fahrenheit.

Ninety-degree temperatures with plenty of sunshine would be good for cotton, Goodson said.

Cotton continues to decline in Phillips County. In 2006, farmers planted 122,000 acres to cotton. Planting dropped severely to 51,000 acres, Goodson said. To date, records indicate the acreage is down is 35,000.

Farmers have cut back on corn plantings, even though Phillips County remains the top county, acreage-wise, Goodson said.

“We have about 50,000 acres compared to 68,000 last season,” Goodson said. “Most of the corn, which is all feed corn, is shipped by barges down the Mississippi River.”

This has been a good year for wheat, Goodson reported. Most farmers averaged 65-70 bushels per acre, he said. The price range has been $5-$6 a bushel after peaking at $9. The acreage for grain sorghum, or milo as bird hunters referred to it, has declined.

“We have between 20,000 and 25,000 acres of grain sorghum,” Goodson said. “Phillips County farmers had 26,000 acres of milo in production in 2007.”

There has been considerable interest for exported grain sorghum, Goodson said.

The negative side of the ledger has been higher costs of virtually every kind, Goodson said. The cost for fertilizers has doubled, Goodson said. Urea has risen from $400 to $800 a ton. Diesel prices have soared. Seed prices have risen as well, Goodson said.

Labor has been ample from a source not everyone is familiar with, Goodson said.

“We have had several Romanians working under contract with farmers for the past three years,” Goodson said. “They get a visa, work from the beginning through harvest and return to their native country.”

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